I Shouldn't Love You
by Gyakutengrl
Summary: Maes Hughes has always been fond of the eldest Elric brother. But he certainly never intended for things to become like this... Hughes/Edward
1. Chapter 1

_Well, here it is. My second fanfic after an incredibly long writing absence._

_Alrighty then…Here it goes. This was based on a idea I've had for a while, and I thought I'd try it out. While writing this, I listened to the opening of the FMA movie nonstop. It inspired me. XD I wrote this on a rainy day due to…multiple things, you could say. I just wanted to test out my yaoi-writing skills. XD Sorry if it sucks. Please bear with me. ^^_

**DISCLAIMER: I do not own the Fullmetal Alchemist franchise, or any aspects of the title….Though I wish I did…**

**Rating: PG-13/ R in later chapters**

**WARNING: Male/male, angst, slash, yaoi, Edward/Hughes **

**I am fully aware of how OOC the characters in this will probably be. And I also realize that this relationship is also highly unlikely in the real world. XD But, hey, a girl's got to hold on to her dreams.**

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

It scared him. It humiliated him. It made him feel immersed in guilt and regret. It wasn't supposed to be like this. Lieutenant Colonel Maes Hughes had liked the young Edward Elric from the start, there was no denying that. And it was true that he had developed some affection for the boy. But, he had only intended for it to be a fatherly regard to the young alchemist, definitely not what it was now. Hughes wasn't in love with him. He had _not_ fallen for Edward Elric. He…he couldn't have! The boy was fifteen! He was twice his age, for Christ's sake! AND, he had a lovely wife and a child he adored tremendously. He had a successful job and… And yet….since he had first met the young prodigy, something had felt missing…Though he put on a show, feigning strength, Hughes knew that Edward harbored deep troubles. And, for some reason beyond him, the older man had felt a frightening desire to protect the boy and provide him with the comfort he could see he needed. He couldn't quite put his finger on it, but somewhere between his first meeting with the elder Elric and the present, he had fallen victim to his worst nightmare.

"Damn it all. What do I do now…?" Hughes sighed miserably before slumping forward onto his desk.

Of course, Edward wouldn't need him always. He had his brother, who could no doubt comfort him when necessary. Why _should _the teenager feel for the Lieutenant Colonel the way he had come to feel for him? He had so much more to do than indulge in the thirty-year-old's feelings. Hughes slapped himself, hard. He then slumped forward onto the front of his desk, sighing miserably. _Get a grip on yourself. This isn't right._

~*~*~

Edward Elric shuffled down the hallway to the mess hall, his face buried in a book concerning the properties of the alchemic properties of the human body. Yawning, he turned the page. He soon felt himself bump into someone, causing him to stop. Lowering his book, he then looked up to see Lieutenant Colonel Maes Hughes adjusting his glasses.

"Ah, Lieutenant. Always nice to see you," Edward greeted Hughes with a grin.

"Oh…Well, hello, Ed," Hughes said, and then looked around, "Alphonse isn't with you…?"

"Nah, Al's back in the library. Thought I'd take a break from studying and get something to eat," the blonde smiled.

"Oh. I see…" Hughes trailed off, and found himself avoiding the young Alchemist's eyes. He cleared his throat. " So. What're you reading?"

"Ah, some book about the human body, and its natural correspondence with alchemy, and whatnot," Edward answered, flipping through some of its pages, "But I've read better." Again with that signature grin of his.

"Well, that's…good….," Hughes was finding it difficult to construct a sentence that didn't sound like he wasn't paying attention to what the boy was saying. And he wasn't paying attention, not in the least. Instead, he was focusing on Edward's face. God, he loved that face, every part of it. Especially those eyes; they were liquid amber, a raging fire in essence. He couldn't get enough of these features now so precious to him. And that hair…The prodigy's hair was that of silken gold. And that _skin_-

"Hughes?" Edward asked, tilting his head in that familiar way of his, "Something wrong?"

"Ah- N-no, sorry. Just…drifting off…" Hughes snapped to attention, and felt his face burn slightly. He gulped. _God, get a grip, Maes! _

"Oh, ok. Well, I've gotta go- I'm starving! Catch ya later, Hughes." The short alchemist grinned again and continued on his way to the mess hall, leaving a very bewildered Maes Hughes behind.

~*~*~

Colonel Roy Mustang's eyebrow arched upon seeing Lieutenant Colonel Hughes enter his office. He placed his paperwork to the side of his desk, and folded his hands, his chin resting on top.

"Hughes. What do you want?" inquired the Crimson Alchemist, and was incredibly disturbed to see his long-time friend sink into one of his chairs with a dejected groan.

"Roy…I'm in trouble."

Roy furrowed his brow. "Trouble? What do you mean, Hughes?" He narrowed his onyx eyes. "What have you done now?"

Hughes wearily dropped his head into his hands, "I…Roy, I'm not sure if I should say it."

"Well, you've already made me worried and since my work's been interrupted, you'd better tell me what's bothering you."

Hughes stood, and turned away from his friend. "I…I seem to have…done something I shouldn't have." he began slowly.

Roy's patience was wearing thin. "For God's sake, Maes, out with it already!"

Hughes took a deep breath. _Here goes nothing. _"Roy…I'm…I've fallen for someone!"

Confusion washed over Colonel Mustang's face. "What do you…? Hughes? What are you talking about?"

Hughes didn't respond. His hand was covering his mouth. Now it was Roy's turn to stand. He marched to his friend's side, and firmly grasped his shoulder, only to find it was shaking. Mustang spun Hughes around. It took a moment for it all to register.

Maes' face was pale. His cheeks were flushed, and his eyes brimmed with tears. Roy was dumbfounded. He grabbed his friend's other shoulder.

"Hughes…What the hell…?" Roy almost whispered in disbelief.

Hughes averted his gaze. "You'll…you're not going to like this, Roy."

Mustang's face hardened. _Shit. _"I'll be the judge of that, Maes. Now, out with it."

Hughes looked into Mustang's eyes. "Roy, I have fallen for someone. Someone we both know very well."

Roy could only stare at his friend in confusion. _What the hell…? Who could he be-_Then, it dawned on him. He tightened his grip. "Hughes…no. Not…"

Hughes sighed, and nodded as a tear slipped down his cheek. "Y-yes. It's him. It's…Fullmetal."

* * *

**I am so going to Hell for this. XD **

**Please R&R, and let me know if you have any ideas for another fanfic or what I should do with this one. ^^**

**Reviews are nice, flames are not.**

**Chapter 2 is coming up! **


	2. Chapter 2

_Ah, a new chapter. So, let's see what Maes will have to face now. Poor guy…I know I'm being pretty mean to him now, but, trust me, it will all work out in the end. _

**DISCLAIMER: I do not own Fullmetal Alchemist, and all that.**

**Rating: PG-13/R in later chapters, eventually coming to M-rated lemony goodness. Enjoy, fan girls. XD**

**WARNING: Male/male, angst, slash, Edward/Hughes **

_I'm trying to figure out a nickname for this pairing, but I've only come up with some bad ones… My best is for Maes/Ed; Meds. XD I know, it's pretty lame, so if any of you can spare me some embarrassment, and come up with some nicknames that don't suck, please let me know. __**^_^**_

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

"Hughes," Roy whispered, pulling his friend close, "I'm going to assume this is all a joke, and you have just become _very_ good at pulling fast ones. Now, please tell me this is all a prank or…or something!"

Hughes looked down.

Roy's eyes widened. He stuttered, "B-but, he's just a kid, Maes! And you! You have _Gracia_! And what about Elicia?!"

Hughes could only continue to stare at the floor. "I…I don't know. I just thought you should know. I knew you'd hate me for this."

Roy snorted. "Oh, don't put this on me, you dramatic fool. Your personal activities are the _least_ of my worries. I'm talking about Edward. And your family. And I don't hate you, idiot. I just can't tolerate this…"

Hughes sniffed.

Roy sighed. "Well, you were right, Hughes. You _are_ in trouble. You'd better break of this charade with Fullmetal before-"

"He doesn't know," Maes uttered, raising his head, his eyes red-rimmed. He removed his glasses, fished inside his pocket for a cloth, cleaned them, then replaced them on his face.

Mustang wasn't sure how to respond. All he could do was inhale deeply and exhale slowly, taking his time to think of what to say. This continued on for about a minute.

"Say something," Hughes said quietly, in an almost pleading tone. It made Roy wince.

"Well, what am I supposed to say?! This is one hell of a shock!"

An awkward silence passed over the two before Hughes cleared his throat.

Nodding silently, Hughes turned to leave. "…I know. I just…I have to go." He started for the doors. Roy didn't let go of his friend's shoulders.

"Let me go." Hughes said.

Roy held on.

"Roy, let me GO."

"No. You listen to me, Maes Hughes, and you listen good. I want you to end this, as soon as you can. For… for Edward's sake! He's dealing with enough right now. If you don't do something about this, so help me, I will. Understand?"

"…"

"Hughes!"

"…Stay out of my business, Roy", Hughes said in a low, dangerous tone, that made the Colonel finally release him.

He looked Roy in the face, his green eyes watery. Roy backed off. Without another word, the Lieutenant Colonel strode to the doors, pushed them open, and exited. Roy watched the doors close, then sat back down behind his desk. He sighed loudly, slamming his hands down on the desktop. _This isn't right, Hughes._

Once back in his room, Hughes slid onto the floor, his back against the door. He needed some time to think. Alone.

~*~*~

"Nnn!" Edward stretched the next morning, raising his arms high above his head. "So, Al," he said, rotating the kinks out of his automail hand, "You finish what you needed to get done yesterday at the library?"

Alphonse nodded cheerfully. "Yep. All done."

"Good, good. Then we can do whatever we want," the older Elric confirmed happily. "What should we do?"

Al paused for a moment to come up with an idea. He then placed his hand on Edward's shoulder. "Brother, can we spar for awhile? I feel like it's been a long time since we last practiced."

Edward grinned. "Sure thing, Al."

It _had_ been awhile since the Elric brothers had practiced their fighting skills. They had been intensely studying various things recently, such as the Philosopher's Stone, so they hadn't had much time for more fun activities. Now was their chance. This was a good day to spar. The sun shone brightly and the sky was a deep, clear blue. Not a cloud was in the sky. The brothers were alone in the lush green park that was nearby, so they had plenty of space to move.

There was an electrifying silence as the Elric brothers stared each other down, daring the other to make the first move. A minute or so passed. In the end, it was Alphonse who made the first move. He charged towards his older brother, and threw a punch at the shorter boy. Armor and automail collided, making a sharp, clanging noise ring through the air. Edward chuckled cockily, feeling the faltering resistance against his brother's arm. He was holding back.

"C'mon, Al. I know you're stronger than that. Show me what ya got," Edward egged his brother on, a familiar glint in his bright eyes.

Alphonse nodded, bracing himself against Ed's automail. Suddenly, he leapt backwards, then advanced quickly, moving out of the way when Edward attempted a low kick to the suit of armor's leg. In return, Alphonse performed a swift roundhouse kick to the back of his brother's legs. Edward fell to the ground.

"Is that better?" Alphonse cheekily asked his brother, laughing lightly. "I've beaten you every time we've sparred, and I won't let you down this time either, Brother." He then lunged at Ed again.

Ed gritted his teeth, and back flipped out of the way, with Al following. Upon landing, Edward jumped at his brother, aiming to land a punch to the suit of armor's head. Alphonse blocked it, using his shoulder to repel the short alchemist. A spike on his armor caught on Ed's red coat, tearing a huge hole open in the sleeve. Edward skidded to a stop several feet away, panting slightly.

"Damn…I can't keep fixing this with Alchemy, Al!" Edward shouted, taking off the offended garment and tossing it aside.

Alphonse merely shrugged nonchalantly. "Should've been more careful. Who's the one that said 'C'mon, Al, show me whatcha got!', anyway?" he said, mimicking Edward's cocky tone. This only made the short-tempered Elric become more irritated than before.

"Tch… Fine. I'll show you!" Edward roared, feeling his anger fuel his sudden burst of energy as he went in for another attack.

Ed tried a combination of moves, involving some complicated kicks and punches that sent Alphonse flying backwards. He recovered, however, and dodged Ed's next incoming barrage of furious swipes to the suit of armor's head, and swiftly repelled his brother with a punch to the stomach. Edward reeled back and dropped to his knees, panting hard. He dropped his head as he grabbed at his stomach, looking up at Al through strands of the hair that was in his face.

"Oh….OK. You…you win….AGAIN," Edward admitted defeat, standing up and taking a few shaky steps towards his brother. He placed his automail hand on the suit of armor's chest plate, and sighed. "I guess I still have yet to beat you, Al. Ah, well…You wanna head back?"

"Hmm? So soon? Brother, I thought you wanted to show me your skills," Al taunted. He was on a role today. "Tired already?"

Edward felt his blood boil. "NO. I'm just-"

He was cut off by the sound of his stomach growling.

"-Hungry."

~*~*~

Lieutenant Colonel Hughes walked through the empty hallway, suffering from an extreme case of self-loathing. He rubbed his bandaged left hand through his glove, recalling what caused the injury. While brooding about his…situation… the night previously, the bewildered man had exploded in a fit of frustration, knocking over several glass items in the process. He had tried to pick up the shards of a fallen lamp, and the pieces of glass cut up his hand quite badly. He had hissed at the contact, and dropped the shards. At that point he had decided it was all just too much, and thus wilted into a sobbing, cursing mess on the floor.

Hughes groaned, rubbing his forehead. On top of everything, he had a headache, too. It truly was the cherry on top of a great weekend. At least, that's what he thought, until the infamous Edward Elric rounded the hallway's corner and, once again, bumped into Hughes. Actually, it was more like he slammed into the Lieutenant. The impact left them both on the floor, with Ed cursing and Hughes clawing at his forehead and groaning.

"D-Damn it all! Watch where you're going you jerk-," Edward started, but stopped when he saw who it was. "Oh….It's you, Hughes. Heh, sorry about that," Ed nervously grinned, standing up and offering his right hand to Hughes. "Seems like we've got a habit of running into each other."

Maes froze and looked up, headache forgotten. _Shit_. The teen's timing couldn't have been worse. Hughes was suddenly aware of his disheveled appearance, as he had forgotten about maintaining his appearance in the midst of his stress, and felt his face flush. Failing to notice the older man's discomfort, Edward, still smiling, continued to offer his hand. Hughes, now blushing, didn't know what to do. _Do I take it or not?? Do I take it or not?! _Gulping, the Lieutenant reached for Ed's hand when-

"Brother! I heard a noise, are you okay?!" Alphonse said, rounding the hallway corner. The suit of armor stopped, observed the scene, and said, "Oh, hello Lieutenant. Um….wh-what happened here?"

Maes forgot how to speak. He pulled his hand back quickly, and hurriedly stood up, shoving said hand into his military uniform pocket. His eyes were downcast. __…

Edward laughed slightly, rubbing the back of his head, "It's okay, Al. Hughes and I just…ran into each other, that's all." Ed then turned to face Hughes. "So, where are you off to today, Lieutenant?"

Hughes cleared his throat loudly, and tried to make his mouth form a logical sentence. "I…um….I-I….Office…P-paperwork…", he attempted, his heart racing. _Wait…did that even make sense?!_

Ed and Al exchanged glances, sensing something amiss.

"Uh…Everything alright, Hughes?" Ed started, crossing his arms.

"Yeah…Is something wrong?" Al inquired.

Hughes mentally slapped himself. _God dammit, get yourself together!!_ He cleared his throat again. "Um, y-yes…I'm fine…Ah, if…you'll excuse me-" He took off down the hallway, nearly jogging.

Alphonse and Edward were left standing around, confused.

"H-he's alright, isn't he, Brother?" Alphonse nervously asked.

"I…I don't know, Al," Ed started, "He seemed a little off . Actually, I bumped into him yesterday, and he was acting weird then, too." The young alchemist thought for a moment. "I wonder what's up with him…".

Shrugging, the Elric Brothers proceeded towards the mess hall.

* * *

**Oh, Edward. If only you knew…Poor, poor Hughes. XD Ah, it's getting dramatic!**

**I'm hoping to get around to Ed and Hughes getting closer in**

**the next few chapters….But I will only update if I get at LEAST**

**FIVE reviews for this chapter. Otherwise, I don't know if people**

**are actually reading this story. C'mon, people. I need all the critiques I can get!!**

**Until then,**

**Gyakutengrl 3**


	3. Chapter 3

_FINALLY, AN UPDATE!! Please forgive me for my delay on updating this story. There was basically NO time to work on this. At all. So, I will probably be revising this, and past chapters, a LOT. But I thought I would get this done as soon as I could when I discovered people were actually reading this (Thanks for the reviews, BTW!!). OK, enough of my rambling. Here we go._

**DISCLAIMER: I do not own Fullmetal Alchemist, and all that.**

**Rating: PG-13/R in later chapters, eventually coming to M-rated lemony goodness. **

**WARNING: Male/male, angst, slash, Edward/Hughes**

**Plot summary: Lieutenant Colonel Maes Hughes has come to a horrifying realization: he has fallen victim to Edward Elric's undeniable charm, and is in love with him!! Now that he has discovered this, what will he do about Edward? Worse yet, he now has to return home to Gracia and Elicia…! **

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Hughes stood at the foot of the stairs that led up to his front porch, feeling horribly inclined to turn around and flee back to Central. But the idea of going back to his office meant…_gulp_…possibly running into Edward. And he did NOT want to think or worry about things like that. So, he had no choice but to drag himself up the stairs, one at a time. His reluctance in going home surprised and worried him. Why should he not be happy to return home? He was going back to his _wife _and_ daughter_, people he loved a lot and should have enjoyed returning to. _Still…_Hughes stopped on the middle stair…_It just doesn't feel right coming home tonight…_Once at the front door, he could already smell the amazing dinner Gracia had prepared for the occasion of her husband returning home after his absence. _Is that…her quiche I smell?_ Hughes felt his heart sink even further than it already had. She knew he loved her quiche.

Sighing, he twisted his weary face into something like one of the silly smiles he normally wore when coming home. He knocked loudly, and called out in a terribly fake jovial tone, "Knock knock! Guess who's home?" He felt his heart race as he heard the thundering of his little daughter's footsteps coming down stairs and towards the door.

The door was unlocked and thrown open, revealing Elicia Hughes' adorable face. Her green eyes sparkled with delight as she bellowed, "DADDY! DADDY! YOU'RE BACK!" She laughed cheerfully as she launched herself into her father's arms. "I missed you," Elicia said, nuzzling into the warmth of his military uniform.

Hughes chuckled weakly, and held his small child, burying his face into her light brown hair. "Missed you too, princess," he forced out of his drying throat. Then he heard light footsteps approach. He felt like his heart would break as he looked up to find his delicate wife standing in the doorway, smiling warmly. "Welcome home, Maes, dear," she said, as she gazed lovingly at her daughter and husband.

"Gracia…," Hughes began, putting down Elicia. He stepped up to his wife, and embraced her, feeling his eyes threaten to well up. "I…I missed you," he quietly said, hugging his wife close to him. _Why is this so hard? I feel…guilty…_

Gracia smiled, and hugged her husband tightly, then pulled away and said, "Well, Maes, dinner's ready. I made quiche; I know how much you like it. You've been away longer this time, so…I wanted to welcome you back with something I knew would make you happy." She gestured towards the dining room. "Shall we?"

~*~*~

While Gracia's cooking was undeniably delicious, and he normally devoured every last bit of his meal, tonight Maes picked at his dinner, not tasting the food he was consuming. Every so often he stole a furtive glance at his wife, waiting for the dreaded moment when she would ask about his work. Waiting for her to look at him, make eye contact, and find out her husband's hidden troubles. Waiting for her to point at him accusingly, and question his sanity. Waiting…for something-_anything_-to happen! Instead, his wife ate quietly, eyes cast towards her plate, except for the occasional watchful glance towards Elicia, who was noisily eating her meal, crumbs decorating her face like freckles. Finally, Gracia looked towards Hughes, and made eye contact. Her green eyes shone in the dim light of the dining room. Hughes felt his hands start to sweat slightly, and he gripped his fork tighter. He smiled nervously at his wife, whose eyes closed as she tilted her head and smiled back. Hughes' eyes widened. _That tilt of the head…just like…Edward…_He gripped his fork even tighter, his knuckles turning white from the pressure. _No…! Nononono…Don't think about him now, now's not the time to-_

"-Maes, dear?" Gracia interrupted her husband's thoughts, "You've hardly touched your quiche…aren't you hungry?"

Hearing her mother's comment, Elicia looked up from the disaster area that was her plate. Seeing her father's uneaten meal, her eyes widened. "Daddy," she began, wagging her chubby index finger at her father, "you have to eat your dinner! Or else, you won't grow up big and strong." Pointedly, she shoveled a chunk of quiche into her open mouth. "See?" she said between chews, "Id's weawy dasdy." Gracia chuckled at her daughter's innocence.

"Oh, Elicia," Gracia chided, "Daddy's already all grown up. But _you_ still have quite some growing to do. Right, Maes?" She turned to face her husband.

Maes felt his worries melt away as he looked at his adorable daughter. He chuckled. He said gently to his daughter, "Mommy's right, Elicia. I'm allll grown up, big and strong. You, however," he said while pointing to his child, "will grow much bigger than you are, into a young lady, then you'll grow up to be an adult." He smiled at Elicia.

Elicia's eyes widened in wonder at the thought of growing up to be "an adult". She giggled to herself, as she proceeded to consume her meal. Hughes pushed his chair out from the table, picked up his plate, and disappeared into the kitchen, thankful to escape the awkward meal. He breathed a sigh of relief, and rolled up the sleeves of the button-down he had changed into. As he was about to wash off his plate, the telephone rang. Hughes looked up. _Who could that be…?_ He walked over to the phone and picked up. "This is Hughes," he said quietly into the receiver.

"Hughes. This is Mustang," Roy's voice spoke over the line, his tone clipped and professional.

~*~*~

Hughes blanched, his defenses suddenly up. "Mustang," he began, twisting the phone cord around his index finger, "what is it? I'm busy…"

He heard Roy sigh on the other end. "Come on, Hughes. You're at home, correct?"

Hughes nodded automatically, and then quickly remembered that he was speaking to Mustang over the phone, so he said quietly, "Yes."

"So…? What did you tell Gracia? Have you decided what to do?"

"…uh…"

"…Hughes…?"

"…"

Roy sighed again, his voice now condescending, like that of a mother teaching her child right from wrong. "_Hughes_. You have to talk to Gracia about how you're going to put an end to this at some point."

Hughes didn't like his superior's tone. _Ugh. Talk about what? I haven't even done anything yet! _"I'll tell her, I just…don't have to now..." Hughes whispered, still twisting the phone cord, "And you can't tell me when to."

Roy's eyebrow rose. "On the contrary, Lieutenant, I _am _higher than you in rank. Or have you forgotten?"

Maes gritted his teeth, thoroughly annoyed. "Why are you pushing this? It isn't any of your business."

Roy narrowed his eyes, "It doesn't have to be. I'll interfere in any way I want. You're the one going behind your wife's back-"

"-I haven't done anything yet!" Hughes raised his voice slightly, and then lowered it again, remembering that his wife and child were in the next room. "Regardless, I _will_ figure things out with Gracia. Eventually…" Hughes finished, releasing the phone cord and running his now free hand through his black hair.

Roy snorted. "Yeah. Sure. Whatever you say, Hughes," he said. Then he hung up.

_Geez. What's his problem? Hanging up on me like that… _Hughes thought, hanging up on his side, and returning to washing off his plate. "Jerk," Hughes muttered as he worked on cleaning his plate in the sink…

…totally oblivious to the fact that Gracia had been listening to his side of the conversation from behind the kitchen doorway.

* * *

**Thanks to the review of a certain someone, I put in some emotional depth for Hughes. Next chapter will include some contemplation on his side, I think…;) Anyway, so the drama of the Hughes family begins…Let's see what happens next…**


	4. Chapter 4

_Well, here's the next chapter of my little story. I'm starting to really like it…even though I'm not sure where it's going. XD Nonetheless, I'm having fun with this. _

**DISCLAIMER: I do not own Fullmetal Alchemist, and all that.**

**Rating: PG-13/R in later chapters, eventually coming to M-rated lemony goodness. **

**WARNING: Male/male, angst, slash, Edward/Hughes**

**Plot summary: This is a contemplation chapter about Hughes. **

Maybe it was his smile. Maybe it was the way he spoke, the way he walked…and maybe it was his height…or lack thereof. Either way, Hughes knew he was in a tough situation. He really did have feelings for the kid. Edward. Fullmetal. But, now that he had that established, what next? _To tell or not to tell…_Hughes stared up at the ceiling in his bedroom, listening to Gracia's quiet breathing next to him. Listening to the soft tick-tocking of the clock on the small table next to his side of the bed. He rolled over so that he was facing his sleeping wife. Gracia slept peacefully, occasionally sighing in her sleep, and adjusting slightly. She looked so serene, like nothing could disturb her. Hughes soon felt himself staring at her, trying to look into her mind. _If only she knew…What would she say? What would she do?_ He shuddered to imagine her reaction. While Gracia was normally very docile and pleasant, she could be a real monster if need be. And she had always said that she never quite liked…_those kinds of people_, as she so bluntly had put it once. Maes could remember the occasion in question perfectly. It was four years previously, a couple of months before Elicia's birth…

The happy couple had been shopping at the market for groceries when they had come across a particularly cheerful gay couple who were having a lovely time selecting some fruit.

Hughes hadn't really paid attention to them, and had began to proceed towards the dairy section, when Gracia had gently taken hold of her husband's arm, and said quietly, "Maes, dear, look over there."

Maes complied. He looked down at his wife. "Is something wrong?"

Gracia had frowned slightly, rubbing her protruding belly, and said, "No, not really…it's just…they're _that kind of people…_".

Hughes had replied, confusedly, "What do you mean?"

Gracia merely laughed lightly, "Oh, dear, I don't mean anything by it. I just have never really liked…well, you know…".

"…no, I don't think I do…?"

"Well…_gays_. Queers. Homosexuals…?" Gracia bluntly said, glancing over in the direction of the two men who had moved over to the vegetables.

Hughes had stiffened. "Honey, they're regular people like you and me."

Gracia chuckled stiffly. "Well, there is a difference between regular people and…_them_," she said snidely. At that moment, the two men noticed the Hughes' and Gracia's stomach, and came over.

"Oh!" one of them exclaimed in an effeminate voice, "Isn't that adorable! May I ask when your baby's due?"

Gracia had smiled warmly, despite what she had just said, and said sweetly, "Oh, not for a couple more months. Right, Maes, dear?"

Hughes, still a little lost, had chuckled weakly and replied, "Y-yeah, that's right!"

The other half of the duo chuckled lightly, "Well, congratulations. Let's go, Roger," he directed to the one who had first spoke. "Roger" nodded to his partner, and waved to the Hughes' as they walked away.

Gracia had then giggled, facing her husband. "See what I mean?" she said , "Did you hear the one who talked to us first? He sounded like a woman! I mean, it's just not natural," she finished, then turned her attention to the selection of the right kind of milk. Hughes was left flabbergasted. He had never seen this…judgmental… side to his wife before. That made him wonder if there was even more to his wife that he wasn't aware of. As Gracia was placing her selected brand of milk into their shopping cart, she made eye contact with Maes. She merely smiled innocently and continued on with her shopping.

If he thought Gracia had reacted poorly then, there was no telling how she'd react to the suggestion of her own husband having "queer" feelings for another man. A fifteen-year-old man, to be exact. He'd just have to lay low for a while. Telling the truth would have to wait.

_Huh. The truth_. Why did it feel like he had to "tell the truth", anyway? Normally, one "tells the truth" when they have…well, _not _been telling the truth. Which Hughes wasn't guilty of. Yet. _I mean, what's there to tell? _Mustang's face came to mind, and Hughes recalled his recent conversations with his superior and friend. _Hmph. Why would he care now? This time, it doesn't concern him…_This time. This time, Maes wouldn't make the same mistake. This time, he would do things differently…

"Nr…Maes?" Gracia mumbled. "You…you're talking to yourself in your sleep, dear. Is everything alright?"

Hughes' heart almost stopped. He had been so absorbed in his thoughts that he hadn't realized he had indeed been talking quietly to himself. He sighed, then said to his wife in the calmest voice he could manage, "Sorry, sorry. It's nothing, honey. Go…go back to sleep." He smiled in the dark.

His wife mumbled incoherently and turned over, sleep preventing her from saying more.

When he was sure that his wife was asleep, Maes rolled over onto his back. Sighing, he lay there, dreading his return to work the next day. It wasn't going to be easy, figuring things out with…_him_. Hughes closed his eyes. _This time will be different. I promise, Roy. You'll see._

**So there. I made Gracia a homophobe. :D Evil, yes, but essential to the plotline that I'm developing. Oh yeah. I'm going to have lots of fun with this. *Maniacal laughter* So, what does Hughes mean by "This time will be different"? Could something have happened in the past…? Did it involve Roy? Well, we'll just have to see, won't we? ;) **

**Until then, my fair readers,**

_**Gyakutengrl 3**_


	5. Chapter 5

**Hello, my dear readers. I am so very sorry for not writing this long. Many things got in the way of publishing new chapters of this story up on FF, including schoolwork, conflicts and some personal family issues. So, I apologize, but I am putting **_**I Shouldn't Love You **_**on hiatus for now. And to tell the truth, I am not sure when I will be able to update again. But please hang in there, because I will be back. Thank you for reading this, and again I apologize.**

**~Gyakutengrl**


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